Cardiovascular Health Indicator
Measure: Heart Disease Hospitalization Rate

Analysis

As shown in Chart 1 and Table 1, both the total number and the rate of hospitalizations of Minnesotans due to heart disease have declined since 2007. The number of hospitalizations declined and hospitalization rate was significantly lower each year until the year 2014. Through 2019, the number of hospitalizations has increased by approximately 6,000. The average annual hospitalization rate was relatively stable from 2015 through 2019, before dropping significantly in 2020, the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chart 1: Age-adjusted Hospitalization Rate due to Heart Disease for all Minnesotans, 2007-2021

Table 1: Total Hospitalizations and Hospitalization Rate due to Heart Disease for all Minnesotans, 2007-2021

Since 2007, the rate of heart disease hospitalizations declined across all age groups. Table 2 shows the hospitalization rate by year for younger (ages 18-44), middle-aged (ages 45-64), and older (ages 65+) adults. In each year, the vast majority of hospitalizations is occurring in older adults 65 years and older. Even though there is an overall trend of declining hospitalizations and hospitalization rates since 2007, recent years have shown a slowing or reversal of that trend.

Table 2: Total Hospitalizations and Hospitalization Rate due to Heart Disease for adult Minnesotans by age group, 2007-2021

Chart 2A shows the rate of hospitalizations for heart disease for 18-44 year olds. Between 2007 and 2019, the overall rate dropped by 36 hospitalizations per 100,000 per year, or about 22%. However, the hospitalization rate has remained essentially unchanged from 2013 through 2019. The number of heart disease hospitalizations and the hospitalization rate dropped significantly in 2020, the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. This drop was largely erased with an increase in hospitalizations back to 2017 levels in 2021.

Chart 2A: Hospitalization Rate due to Heart Disease for Minnesotans ages 18-44, 2007-2021

Chart 2B shows the rate of hospitalizations for heart disease for 45-64 year olds. Between 2007 and 2019, the overall rate dropped by 256 hospitalizations per 100,000 per year, or about 22%. This long-term decline in the hospitalization rate ended in 2015, significantly increasing through 2019. The number of heart disease hospitalizations and the hospitalization rate dropped significantly in 2020, with only a small increase in 2021. It is unclear if these recent changes are a trend or are temporary impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chart 2B: Hospitalization Rate due to Heart Disease for Minnesotans ages 45-64, 2007-2021

Chart 2C shows the rate of hospitalizations for heart disease for individuals 65 years and older. Between 2007 and 2019, the overall rate dropped by 1,557 hospitalizations per 100,000 per year, or about 29%. Like in the younger and middle-aged adults, this long-term decline stopped in recent years, with essentially flat hospitalization rates starting in 2014. In 2020, the hospitalization rate dropped by 16% with an increase of 5% in 2021. It is unclear if these recent changes are a trend, or are temporary impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chart 2C: Hospitalization Rate due to Heart Disease for Minnesotans ages 65+, 2007-2021

Other Resources

• Interactive Atlas of Heart Disease & Stroke
  Online mapping tool from CDC with health indicators (including mortality and hospitalizations), risk factors, social and economic data, health care delivery, insurance, and health care costs data for states and counties. Some census tract data is also available.


• AHRQ HCUPNet
  Online data tool from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) for the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP). Users can download quick tables or create custom queries of national and state-level data on inpatient hospitalization, emergency department, and ambulatory surgery care.


• Heart Attacks at Minnesota Public Health Data Access Portal
  Online data tool from the Minnesota Department of Health showing the heart attack hospitalization rate in Minnesota by 3-year time periods, age group (35 years and older), sex, and county.

Data Source

The data were obtained through the Minnesota Hospital Discharge Dataset, also known as the Minnesota Hospital Uniform Billing (UB) Claims Data, provided to the Health Economics Program at the Minnesota Department of Health by the Minnesota Hospital Association. The dataset captures hospitalizations for Minnesota residents and comes from Minnesota hospitals (except for Federal Hospitals owned by the Veterans Administration or the Indian Health Service) or other states that share data with the state of Minnesota (including the bordering states of Iowa, North Dakota, and South Dakota; hospitalizations that occur in Wisconsin for Minnesota residents are not included/shared). Annual population estimates were obtained through the U.S. Census Bureau in collaboration with the National Center for Health Statistics.

Measure Definition

Heart Disease hospitalizations through September 30, 2015 are identified as the primary discharge code of ICD-9: 390-398, 402, 404, 410-429, including Coronary Heart Disease as ICD-9: 410-414, 429.2, and Congestive Heart Failure as ICD-9: 428. Starting on October 1, 2015, hospitalizations for Heart Disease were identified as the primary discharge diagnosis as ICD-10: I00-I09, I11, I13, I20-I51, including Coronary Heart Disease as ICD-10: I20-I25, and Congestive Heart Failure as I50. This includes the following broad categories: Acute rheumatic fever, chronic rheumatic heart disease, hypertensive heart disease, hypertensive heart and renal disease, ischaemic heart diseases, pulmonary heart disease and diseases of pulmonary circulation, and other forms of heart disease. Patients who are discharged to another hospital are excluded so as to prevent double-counting single events resulting in hospitalizations at multiple facilities.

The change from ICD-9 to ICD-10 introduces some uncertainty in the trend from 2014 through 2016, , because changes in coding may lead to differences in classification of conditions before and after the transition.